Casting Couch: Hathaway, Blethyn, B.I.G.

“Anne Hathaway, Bill Irwin, Anna Deveare Smith and Debra Winger will star in the comedy “Dancing With Shiva” for Sony Classics. Based on a screenplay by Jenny Lumet, the plot details are being kept under wraps. Jonathan Demme (“The Silence of the Lambs,” “The Manchurian Candidate”) will direct and produce. Shooting begins mid-September in Connecticut…” (full details)

“Producer Elaine Wickham and writer-director Jan Dunn begin filming this Summer on “The Calling,” about a girl who wants to become a nun, starring Brenda Blethyn as the mother superior. Ramsgate, a Victorian seaside town in the county of Kent on England’s east coast will be used for filming…” (full details)

“The role of Notorious B.I.G. for an upcoming biopic on the rapper will be filled through an open casting call, the film’s producers said Thursday. “Notorious,” which has been in the works for nearly seven years, will seek its star by auditioning actors and non-actors alike who resemble the rapper, whose real name was Christopher Wallace. Anyone can submit audition videos beginning 3 a.m. EDT Sunday to www.foxsearchlight.com/notorious or www.biggiecasting.com…” (full details)